Esesse – 4 côtés – Prekese ground – Mami Tie

4cotés (Esesse) is the Cameroonian name (Sawa) for the fruit of Tetrapleura tetraptera.
It is also known by the following names

• 4 Côtés (Cameroon),
• Osakirisa or Oshosho in Igbo (Nigeria),
• Aidan in Yoruba (Nigeria and Benin),
• Prekese in Ghana.

It is the fruit of the Aidan tree, a plant belonging to the flowering family common in tropical Africa.

Esesè is a spice that is highly valued by Cameroonian chefs. It is mainly used for its very fragrant meat to give the preparations more flavor. In Ghana, the fruits and flowers are used as perfumes and to make ointments from palm oil. They are often added to chocolate, in jams, and used as a flavoring for cookies.

In Nigeria, particularly the Igbo culture and Cameroon, the fruits (in pieces) and seeds (often fermented) are used in small amounts as a condiment to flavor sauces such as mbongo and yellow sauce.

In Cameroon we mainly use its very fragrant meat to give the preparations more flavor. Most often esesé is found in already squashed markets. It is then sufficient to roast (“burn”) it and then grind it to add it to the preparation.